i'd also say that in terms of the bow and arrow cast, a mid flex road is what you want, not a tip flex.

I'm not sure on that one, honestly. I've seen it go both ways. But there are very clearly differences between rods. And other than length, I haven't put my finger on the factors.

It'd be a very interesting experiment. Bow and arrow casting is a good topic for experiment, as it takes the skill of the caster pretty much out of the equation. You are either proficient or not proficient, but once you can do it you can't do it any better. It's all in the rod. All you're doing is pulling back and releasing.

I have no issues controlling a bow and arrow with any rod. Accuracy isn't an issue. It goes where you point it. Differences are all in how far it goes, and how tight the loop it's throwing is. It's all about how efficiently the energy transfers.

FWIW, I once did a small scale test with 9 footers. Loomis GL3 vs. Orvis Superfine vs. Sage Z-axis. The Loomis was the best, a medium fast action rod. The Superfine was the worst, a slow action. But the Z-axis lost to the Loomis despite being faster.

I'm not convinced it is the "speed" of the rod that has much to do with it. I think it's more likely that you want a very smooth progression, which can be achieved in fast or slow actions. A really soft tip with a fairly rapid, parabolic taper. The z-axis likely lost to the Loomis because of too stiff a tip, it's fast through and through. The Orvis likely lost for the opposite reason, it's slow through and through. But the Loomis, with a fairly soft tip which stiffens quickly, is probably the ticket. There's plenty of rods which follow the same concept, so I'm not saying Loomis is unbeatable or anything. But that's just my preliminary hypothesis, soft tip progressing to a stout backbone. I'd love to do some testing with a dozen or more rods, all equal lengths.

And of course this would apply ONLY to bow and arrow casts. Traditional casting is a different ballgame.

I have that LSi rod in a 7'6" 4wt and love it. I'd say that it is one of my "go to" rods and I fish it as much as I do my 9' 5wt. I have an Allen "Trout 3/5" reel on my 4wt and it balances very nicely.

I think you'd be happy with that rod and as you mentioned, the warranty is solid. For the money, it's a pretty good option.

wgmiller .. my only rod I have is the same in a 9' 6 weight and I'm happy with it tho I am to inexperienced to really tell the difference excluding weight and loading. I handled a few others but there was no way for me to cast them. Kinda leaves me at a disadvantage on testing any out so I am going with the info and recommendations I received in this thread to go along with how much i want to $pend.

Do other shops rig up rods so you can actually cast and feel them out?

Posted on: 2012/12/9 10:38

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There are no evil thoughts except one, the refusal to think

I think most shops would be willing to rig up a rod to let the customer take it for a "test spin". I know you can do this at Bass Pro in Harrisburg, so I'm sure smaller shops wouldn't have a problem with it.

For the most part, I use my 7'6" 4wt on smaller streams where the 9' 5wt would be more of a hassle to cast and navigate with. Still enough backbone to lay out a cast, yet small enough to work through the brush with.

I have a one of the cabela's prestige rods (7'6" 4wt) from a couple years ago. I got it as a gift and I love it.

I'm also a bit inexperienced, but I really like it for casting dries. Casting buggers or anything with more weight is a bit of a challenge for me, but I gather that's just the way it is.

That being said, I recently got a TFO 8' 4wt which can handle the bigger flies better without sacrificing much if anything (as far as i can tell) with the smaller flies. I also find it a lot easier to roll cast.

Went with the TFO 7'9 and went out with it for the first time yesterday ... love it. Smooth as silk and I was actually more accurate ysterday on my casts as I felt like a different FF'r and definitely a fan. Big difference in overall feel than my 8'6 Cabellas rod but maybe thats just me. Will be using this rod often.

Thanks again to all the info provided in this thread .. it guided me

Posted on: 2013/1/14 10:13

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There are no evil thoughts except one, the refusal to think

All rods have a different feel. All unique and good in their own way...

You guys would know better then I. the only other rod I own is my 8'6 Cabellas LSI and the feel is night and day. Maybe its the reel or something but I felt like a different FF'er on the water yesterday when it comes to casting. Maybe I had some special mojo for the day

Posted on: 2013/1/14 13:57

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There are no evil thoughts except one, the refusal to think

Some rods work/feel better for certain casters. Matching the rod to the angler is what it's all about. I've seen "aggressive" (for lack of a better word) casters with a very sharp speed-up and stop and a short, quick stroke absolutely hate a full flex rod, and yet when you put a tip flex in their hands, their casting improves and they are really happy with that rod.

The same thing can be said for a caster that is not "aggressive" and has a slower casting stroke - the full flex works best. Most anglers fall somewhere in between those two extremes.

At some point, with experience, you actually can get a feel for an individual rod and adjust your casting stroke to make any rod work for you. Thus you are able to use different rods for different fishing situations.

Going with a rod that matches their natural casting style most often pleases an angler. Apparently, that rod does just that for you. Good stuff.....you're on your way! It looks like the time Heritage Ed and Foxie spent with you paid off.

being a 7'9" Tfo, I assume you have either the 3 or 4 weight Lefty Kreh finesse series.

I have both the 7'9" #4 and the 7'3" #2. The finesse rods have a fairly slow action almost like a fiberglass rod.

My 4 weight Tfo was my go to rod for several years and I've fished it on everything from small trickles on up to the Susquehanna for bass. I've broken and repaired two guides on it and recently broke the tip. I've really been hard on my equipment the last few years. Think it's time to send it to TfO for a replacement. It really was my favorite rod. Just really like that smooth slower action.